First impressions of Glacier

August 9/Day 23. My first view of Glacier Park from the west is both sudden and magnificent.

McDonald Lake, Glacier National Park

I round a curve and there they are: the iconic Ice Age-carved horns of the mountains Glacier is famous for. Many compare them to the Swiss Alps, my ancestral home. From my vantage point they seem to rise directly from the ten mile long Lake McDonald, whose water is impounded by the terminus of an ancient moraine. Thunderstorms are blowing up over the mountain peaks and soon they’re shrouded in cloud and rain, an awesome sight.

I make my usual introductory tour of the visitor center and small village called Apgar, which is a couple of miles

Thunder!

from my campground. The rangers shower me with maps, guides, park newspapers, and other information. I’m overwhelmed, there’s so much to do here and, with only a week to spend, so little time.

When I get back to the trailer, my carbon monoxide detector is beeping every 60 seconds, warning that there’s not enough electrical current to operate it properly. It’s too late to

Becalmed

run my generator now (park rules) so I’ll have to wait until 8:00 a.m. tomorrow. Apparently the detector is on an unfused circuit because in spite of pulling every fuse I can’t disable it; I get to sleep all night with the piercing beep sounding every 60 seconds.

ADDENDUM: Regarding my previous blog about solitary people meeting their demise in the mountains, I see a front page story in the local paper headlined, “Bones and pieces of clothing found believed to be that of hiker.”